This always comes up when discussing "do I need a jointer?" or "which should I get first, a jointer or planer?"
So, the answer is you can plane with a router and you can joint with a router.... if you have to.
Here's a neat video from our member thitz:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9MUDjFWVKQ&feature=fvwrel"]Jointing With a Router - YouTube[/ame]

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXuh_Q02DP8&feature=related"]How to Plane a Board with a Router.mov - YouTube[/ame]

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Last edited by woodnthings; 12-23-2011 at 09:55 PM.

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One application where I joint on a router table is when working with highly figured woods where tear-out can be an issue on a standard straight-knife jointer. I use a spiral bit on my table, and that helps tremendously.

A track saw also works amazingly well to edge joint stock, in the right circumstances.

Quote:

I can completely understand jointing with the router, but planing? Planers aren't that expensive are they?

No, but a planer won't flatten a board like this method will (cups, warps, etc). Think of it more like a method of face-jointing large stock.

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The videos show 2 types of sleds both similar. The advantage to a router sled is that for planing very large surfaces, like table tops or slabs which will not fit in a typical planer, 15" or 20". bill

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Last edited by woodnthings; 12-23-2011 at 11:56 PM.

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Planing with a router can be done but there are caveats. It makes a lot of dust and a heckuva mess. Depending on the size, it can get time consuming.

Without a flat surface to start with (which face goes down), The planed surface will register on how the board sits. IOW, a board in the rough, may be fuller along one side, or have high and low spots. If this is the side that goes down for the initial passes on the reverse side, it would have to be shimmed (to the best ability) to get a fairly parallel surface.

Once flipped and the second side is machined, it will plane however it is set up. The board then would have to be edge jointed to get a perpendicular edge (square) to the newly planed surfaces.

This always comes up when discussing "do I need a jointer?" or "which should I get first, a jointer or planer?" So, the answer is you can plane with a router and you can joint with a router.... if you have to.

Quote:

Originally Posted by cocheseuga

The disadvantage is that it can take until the apocalypse. I'd rather rip something down to fit in my planer than have to do that again, if at all possible.

AS with any woodworking process it depends on...

1. The size of the workpiece. For instance a large slab chainsaw milled from a stump or tree. You would not be able to rip and glue this size workpiece or would you want to:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t51SSP12Gk8&feature=related"]Large Log planing - YouTube[/ame]

2. The tools and machines available in the shop. Folks just starting and or on a budget may not have jointer or planer at this stage, but they may have a router and lots of time....
It actually goes faster than I thought it would.

I made a long 11 ft x 15" wide glue up for a decorative column in the shop. It was too long and too heavy for me to manage
So I used a router to increase the width of the inner channel.
Here: Capping a post with Oak

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The best advice is from someone who has actually done the operation, owns the same or similar tool or machine and who has experience with the material. BTDT? But that advice is "free", so take your chances ... you get what you pay for.

Used the "MDF clamped under edge" method this afternoon to joint a nice straight edge on a 5/4x(~)8x4' piece of mahogany -- worked fine, even if I had to make two passes.

Think I'll rig up a jig after Christmas and try router-planing a few blocks of pecan salvaged from a tree cut many years ago, sitting in the corner of my shop since. Each is about the size of a good piece of firewood, ~6x6x24", pretty rough and uneven.

Nice easy way to join to large or wider boards to insure there are no offsets in the glue up:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPPdo3YOkIc&feature=related"]How to Edge Joint Boards for Perfect Alignment - YouTube[/ame]

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The best advice is from someone who has actually done the operation, owns the same or similar tool or machine and who has experience with the material. BTDT? But that advice is "free", so take your chances ... you get what you pay for.

Seems like a great way to make certain the boards don't shift in the glue up process.
A Thintz Video on the use of the bit:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YAuqGd5tu08"]Infinity Cutting Tools - Glue Joint Router Bit Setup Block - YouTube[/ame]

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The best advice is from someone who has actually done the operation, owns the same or similar tool or machine and who has experience with the material. BTDT? But that advice is "free", so take your chances ... you get what you pay for.

I think the key to accurate edge jointing using any method (jointer, router, TS) is getting a flat reference face to start with. If the face isn't flat, it's hard to ensure that the jointed edge is a true 90° to the face.

A jointer is the easiest and most effective way to flatten a face, but a planer can do it with the help of a planer sled...you can also use a hand plane, drum sander, or a router with a jig as shown in the video. I suspect it'd take a good long time to flatten a large board using the router.

What I was suggesting was a way to keep the boards in registration using the router lock bit, a self positioning joint so to speak. My issue is that the board shifts slightly under clamping pressure and as a result I need cauls or clamps across the surface to maintain a continuous smooth surface.

It may be my technique either on the glue up or that the boards are not perfectly straight or flat...I donno? Others here seem to have the same issue, so I offered the router lock bit video.
The tongue and groove seemed like another simple method .
Both would seem to require jointed edges and surfaces, but another post by WillemJM discussed that and found it not necessary.

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The best advice is from someone who has actually done the operation, owns the same or similar tool or machine and who has experience with the material. BTDT? But that advice is "free", so take your chances ... you get what you pay for.

I found this to work well for shaving off saw marks [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Freud-SH-5-Professional-Micro-Adjustable-Router/dp/B00005Q7CN/ref=sr_1_1?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1342818715&sr=1-1&keywords=freud+router+fence"]Amazon.com: Freud SH-5 Professional Micro-Adjustable Router Table Fence: Home Improvement[/ame]
I like the independant adjustability of each side of the fence. Before that I wouldn't do it because w/ a shim it seemed I was always loosing at least 1/16".

Not a fan of it for a general router table fence though because the fence boards are kind of flimsy; but it does work well for taking 1/32" off a board after its been ripped to clean it up.